Conventional chewing and bubble gum bases generally contain elastomers, elastomer plasticizers, fillers, waxes, and softeners. The elastomers include natural rubber such as smoked or liquid latex and guayule, natural gums such as jelutong, lechi caspi perillo, massaranduba balata, massaranduba chocolate, nespero, rosidinha, chicle, gutta percha, gutta kataiu, niger gutta, tunu, chilte, chiquibul, gutta hang kang and synthetic rubber such as butadiene-styrene copolymers, polyisobutylene, isobutylene-isoprene copolymers, polybutadiene, vinyl polymers such as polyvinyl acetate, vinyl copolymers such as vinyl acetate/vinyl laurate, ethylene/vinyl acetate and the like.
Typical elastomer plasticizers are natural rosin esters such as glycerol ester of partially hydrogenated rosin, glycerol ester of polymerized rosin, glycerol ester of partially dimerized rosin, glycerol ester of rosin, glycerol ester of tall oil rosin, pentaerythritol esters of partially hydrogenated rosin, partially hydrogenated methyl esters of rosin, pentaerythritol ester and synthetic resins such as terpene resins derived from alpha-pinene, beta-pinene and d-limonene.
Typical waxes are synthetic waxes such as polyethlene and Fischer-Tropsch waxes, natural waxes such as candelilla, carnauba, beeswax, rice bran or petroleum waxes such as microcrystalline and paraffin.
Typical fillers include carbonate types such as magnesium and calcium carbonate, ground limestone and silicate types such as magnesium and aluminum silicate, clay, alumina, talc, as well as titanium oxide, mono-, di- and tri-calcium phosphate, cellulose polymers such as ethyl, methyl and wood and the like.
Typical softeners include hydrogenated vegetable oil, nonhydrogenated vegetable oil, lard, hydrogenated tallow, coca butter, glycerol monostearate, lecithin, mono-, di- and triglycerides, acetylated mono-, di- and triglycerides, distilled mono-, di- or triglycerides, glycerol triacetate, fatty acids such as stearic palmitic, oleic linoleic and linolenic and the like.
Other ingredients such as antioxidants and colorants may also be present.
Conventional chewing gums using these gum bases generally contain water-soluble, natural or artificial bulk sweeteners, water-soluble binding syrups, natural and artificial, liquid or dried flavorants, softeners and emulsifiers.
Conventional gums generally use water-soluble natural or artificial bulk sweeteners such as sucrose, dextrose and sorbitol, along with binding syrups such as corn syrup, starch hydrolysates and 70% sorbitol solution. Conventional gums also include natural and artificial, and liquid or dried flavorants, softeners such as glycerine, propylene glycol, ad emulsifiers such as glycerol monostearate or lecithin.
Skilled artisans have combined these ingredients in various ways to create chewing gums and bubble gums that have various flavors, good texture and mouth feel, and (in the case of bubble gums) good elasticity and bubble characteristics.
Due to the combinations, types and levels of ingredients used in conventional gum base and gum products, however, they tend to be visually opaque when formed into the final shape and will either block or greatly diffuse the transmittance of visible light.